More Than It Seems
by FakeMirage
Summary: Sakura is trying to find someone to love her for her. Sasuke is trying to be invisible. She is the new, cheerful girl. He is a dork that no one cares about. Can the two opposites help each other with their problems with the help of a new internet friend?
1. The Beginning

More that it seems – Chapter 1

Sakura sighed as she looked around the plain room filled with boxes._ 'Why did we have to move to Kohona? Suna wasn't perfect, but I had friends! Here,' _she looked out the window only to see a tree outside her window, which was very different from the dry, barren terrain she was used to, _' I have no one...not that my dad cares.' _She glared at the ceiling as if it was the source of her problems. _'All he ever cares about is his stupid company!'_

" I guess I should start unpacking." Sakura said to the empty room. Begrudgingly, she opened the box closest to her, which ironically, was filled with pictures. The first picture was of her and her friends. It was the first day of sophomore year, and they were all gathered on the front steps of the school. Sakura was in the middle, smiling shyly at the camera, and Kankuro sat next to her, his arm around her shoulder while winking at the camera. Temari sat on her other side, smiling widely and Gaara was behind the trio, looking nonchalant, but if you looked closely, you could see the faintest smirk on his features. Sakura smiled and then pulled out the next picture. It was Gaara's surprise 16th birthday party. In the picture, he glaring at a cake that looked like a panda while Sakura was behind him pinching his cheeks, trying to get him to smile. Temari looked smug as she looked at her little brother and Kankuro was just laughing his butt off at the situation. Gaara had refused to have a birthday party every time Temari mentioned it, which only caused her to be more determine to have one. Sakura flicked through many more pictures of her and her friends and the more she looked at them, the better her mood became.

A few hours later, she was finished unpacking. The once barren room had become filled with color and life. Her bed was covered with lime green bedding and multiple, bright, colored pillows and her once plain walls were covered with many pictures, each holding a good memory for the girl. Her ceiling was also decorated with many mutli-colored paper lanterns. Sakura looked around her room pleased with her new room and pulled out her red Mac. She promised her friends that as soon as she was moved in, she would chat with them online. Sakura quickly pulled up the online messenger and signed in.

**JadedCherry has logged on**

Sakura smiled as she saw all three of her friends were online.

**JadedCherry**: Hi guys!

**PuppetWithNoStrings**: Yo Sakura!

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: Sakura! I'm so glad that you made it there safely! I miss you already!

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: How's Kohona? Are you unpacked? Meet any new cool people?

**FerociousPanda**: Temari. Calm down. She can't answer a million questions at once.

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: * grins sheepishly * Sorry Sakura

**JadedCherry**: Haha Thanks Gaara :) and for your questions Temari, thanks, I miss you too, Kohona's fine, yes and no.

**PuppetWithNoStrings**: What? Don't I even get a hello?

**JadedCherry**: LOL Hi Kankuro. Don't worry I didn't forget you.

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: In reality, she just loves us more :p

**FerociousPanda**: Burn. Kankuro. Burn.

**JadedCherry**: Woah! Calm down you guys, I love you all the same!

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: Sure you do * wink wink * We all know I'm your favorite.

**PuppetWithNoStrings**: Temari, if that is what makes you feel good about yourself, than keep telling yourself that.

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: Shut up Doll Boy!

**PuppetWithNoStrings**: You shut up! I keep telling you, they're not dolls! They're puppets!

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: Ya ya ya keep telling yourself that girly.

**JadedCherry**: * rolls eyes *

**FerociousPanda**: * rolls eyes *

**JadedCherry**: Hey guys...as interesting as it is to see you guys fight over the internet, I should probably go. I'm exhausted and I need to get ready for school tomorrow.

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: It sucks that you have to start a new school.

**JadedCherry**: Your telling me...they are already done with first quarter...It will be weird for me to start school now and I don't have you guys here with me! I don't know what I will do with out you guys...

**FerociousPanda**: You will me fine Sakura. Don't worry so much. You have always been good at bringing the best out in people. If you need to talk, just text ok?

**JadedCherry**: Thanks Gaara :)

**PuppetWithNoStrings**: Awww how sweet. Now that that sappy moment is over with, you have nothing to worry about Sak. Besides, we will always have your back.

**MyOwnBiggestFan**: Yeah! Go show them who's boss!

**JadedCherry**: Thanks guys. What would I do without you?

Cold, dark eyes stared at the ceiling as he tried to ignore everything that was going on. Yelling could be heard from down stairs, but that a common thing these days.

_'I don't know how much more of this I can take...No one know the real me, and those that do think my life is perfect.'_

Crashes resonated through the house, which only caused the yelling to intensify.

_'My life is far from perfect.' _He glanced over at his pocket knife that was lying on his desk._ ' I just don't know how much more of this I can take...'_

_Well what do you think? First chapters are always the hardest, because they are the start of the next chapter should be longer and carry more of the plot line. Please review and I promise to update soon!_

_- FakeMirage_


	2. First day of Kohona High!

More than it seems – Chapter Two

Sakura contemplated her appearance in the mirror. Today was her first day of school, and although she hated that fact, she still wanted to make a good impression. She was wearing a simple dark green button up shirt that had a matching belt underneath her chest. Her dark washed denim jeans fitted her perfectly and on her feet were comfortable flip flops. Simple eyeshadow, liner and mascara made her jade colored eyes pop and her long, rose petaled hair floated around her body.

_'Not too bad, although I know everyone will already have an impression of me before I even get there.' _

Her idea wasn't too far fetched. She had received a call last night from her new principle, that stated that they, as in the entire student body, was excited that the Haruno heir would even think of coming to their humble school. The Haruno name was very polyonymous by many singers and actors for her father was the publisher of the famous magazine: _The Asterism_. _The Asterism _was your go to when you wanted the gossip about your favorite actor or actress. It always knew who was with who and what new movies were coming out before anyone else did. It was the inside scoop on everyone's 'off the screen' lives. To Sakura, _The Asterism _was a waste of time and brain cells and it also caused her a lot of trouble. Everyone associated the magazine with her, and everyone wanted to be her best friend because they assumed she was their one way ticket to the stars. _The Asterism _had caused much heart ache for the girl in the past when she found that some of her friends had only liked her because she was rich and for her celebrity perks. Of course, Sakura didn't even know any of the celebrities, only her father did. Also, because of her father's occupation, he was hardly home and he barely knew his 17 year old daughter, but that was business for you.

Sakura looked at her phone and the clock read 7:45. _'I guess I better head to school...'_ She grabbed her blue backpack and began the 15 minute walk to her new school. School didn't start till 8:15, but she was supposed to meet her cousin at the front gates. She had only met her cousin a couple of times on the holidays, but when he found out that she was moving back to Kohona, he insisted that he showed her the school, introduce her to his "tons" of friends, and show her the city. She couldn't deny him his wish, even though she wanted to, because she really did need a guide. _'I wonder if he still wears those ridiculous clothes..'_

Lost in her musings, she didn't notice the young man until it was too late. A loud "Ouch!" could be heard from both parties as the young man and the young women collided. Sakura rubbed her bottom as she glanced at the person she ran into. It was a man, who she guessed was around her age, with spiky, out of control black hair. He was wearing baggy, kaki, cargo pants and a dorky plaid polo. The polo wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't in neon yellow and puke green. Covering his onyx eyes were huge, red, square glasses, which finished the dork motif. Finally snapping out of her long observation, she noticed he was hurriedly picking up loose papers off the ground before the wind decided to snatch them. "Sorry I wasn't watching were I …." He quickly cut off her apology with a glare "Watch where your going next time!" He then quickly grabbed the rest of his papers and ran off in the same direction she was headed. "How rude! I know I bumped into him, but he didn't even let me apologize. The nerve of him!" Sakura then proceeded to stomp the rest of the way to the school in worse mood than when she started.

Kohona High was no different than any other public school. It was an old three story, brick building with ivy crawling up the sides. It had lush, green grounds which many of the student were enjoying on this sunny morning. Some of the students were playing soccer, while others were catching up on the latest gossip before classes started. The only unusual difference about this school was that it had a ten foot brick wall around the school grounds with the only entrance being the iron gate which closed at 8:15 and opened at 3. This helped enforce the "no skipping rule", at least that is what the principle had stated the use for it was.

As Sakura neared the front gate, an orange blur materialized and ran toward her at top notch speed. "SAKURA-CHAN!" He threw his arms around her small form and lifted her off the ground. "I'm so glad to see you Sakura-chan. I haven't seen you in forever and now you living here and going to the same high school as me. Isn't that the coolest!"

Sakura felt her face slowly turning blue "Naruto...I...can't...breathe!"

Naruto quickly let go of her with an embarrassed laugh and began scratching the back of his head "Haha ...sorry about that Sakura-chan. I am just so excited that you are here!" He gave a lopsided grin, which must have been contagious since her lips started their own journey upwards " It's okay Naruto. No big deal."

"Great!" He then grabbed her hand and proceeded to drag her into the school vicinity. " I can't wait to introduce you to all of my friends. This is going to be the best year ever!" He quickly led her to the left side of the building where there was a tall tree that looked perfect for climbing. Underneath the tree was a teen sitting on the ground while using the tree to lean upon.

"Shikamaru! Get your lazy butt over here and introduce yourself to my amazing cousin Sakura-chan!"

The teen, now known as Shikamaru, only cracked his eyes open and lazily waved in her general direction "Naruto, you are too troublesome...nice to meet you Sakura. Sorry that you have to be related to someone as troublesome as Naruto."

Sakura giggled at the steaming Naruto "Nice to meet you too Shikamaru-san."

" Suffixes are troublesome Sakura. It's just Shikamaru."

Naruto started looking around widely "Ehh...Shikamaru where's TenTen?"

The leaves above the group starting rustling and suddenly a girl jumped down from the tree and landed in front of them "Boo!" She then started crackeling manicly at their shocked expressions "Haha you should have seen your faces. 'Where's innocent, little TenTen?' and then I scared you to death. Hahaha... it was priceless."

Shikamaru shook his head at her immatureness as Naruto yelled back at her promising to get her next time.

"You won't ever be able to stump me. I'm like a ninja."

"Nuh huh! Your not even close to a ninja. Your like a Princess Leah with your hair like that!"

" I'll show you a Princess Leah!"

"Ahh save me Sakura-chan!"

"Are they always like this?" Sakura discreetly whispered to Shikamaru as TenTen chased Naruto around the tree. He only nodded mutely.

After the two calmed down and Sakura was properly introduced to TenTen, she found out that TenTen and Shikamaru were both juniors just as Naruto and her were. Shikamaru was always lazy and his favorite hobby was cloud watching. TenTen, on the other hand, was a real tomboy and she used her abrasive nature against bullies and she loved to pull pranks. Soon after, the bell rang informing students that they had five minutes to get to their respective classes. Of course, everyone else knew which class to head towards while poor little Sakura had no clue.

"Um..guys..where's the office so I can get my schedule?"

TenTen put her hands on her hips and glared at Naruto "You haven't taken her to the office yet? How is the world were you going to show her to her classes if she doesn't even know what classes she has? Baka!"

"Haha...it must have slipped my mind?" Naruto's poor excuse only made TenTen's glare worsen. A sigh was heard in Shikamaru's direction as he stood up to join the trio "As troublesome as this all is, I'll take Sakura to the office to get her schedule."

Both TenTen's and Naruto's jaw slacked in shock "But Shikamaru..you never do favors for anyone."

He put his hands in his pockets and slowly began the trek back towards the school entrance " This is troublesome, but it is better for me to do it then to let you two continuing arguing on how much an idiot Naruto is."

Sakura laughed at Naruto's dumbstruck expression "Haha come on guys or you will be late for class."

Naruto just flashed her a cheshire grin "Funny one Sakura-chan."

At Sakura's confused stare, TenTen decided to explain "You see, Naruto is lucky and has Kakashi-sensei for first period and unlike Gai-sensei, he is never on time. Sometimes, Kakashi doesn't even show up."

"Oh.."

After TenTen and Naruto (he was being dragged by his ear) scurried to their first class, Shikamaru and Sakura began the journey to the school office. The trip was pretty boring, but it did give Sakura a chance to esteem the student body. You had your preps, your jocks, the hot seniors, the dorks, the nerds, the goths and the punks. _'I wonder what kind of group I will settle into?' _

After reaching the office, Sakura was given her schedule by a nice lady named Shizune. Unlike many other schools in the past, she didn't receive any "good luck" wishes, but she did receive a nice, encouraging smile. After finding her assigned locker, she began looking over her schedule.

"Hey Shikamaru?" He grunted to show he was listening. "Didn't TenTen say earlier that Naruto had first period with Kakashi-sensei?" He nodded, confused on why she was asking. "Well I have it too."

Shikamaru sighed " If I had know that, I would have let Naruto lead you to class...troublesome."

Sakura gave her best apologetic smile "I'm sorry. I'm sure I can find the class from here. Thanks for taking me to the office."

He shook his head, grabbed her hand, and began leading her to her first class. What they didn't know was a pair of jealous eyes were watching them the entire time.

**123451234512345**

When Sakura entered her first class, it was utter chaos. Students were talking loudly, paper balls were being thrown everywhere and students were lounging on their desk tops.

"Sakura-chan! Over here!"

Looking across the room in the back, Sakura saw Naruto waving wildly for her to come join him.

She smiled in greeting as she walked over and sat next to him "Is class always this crazy?"

Naruto sat back with his feet propped up on his desk "Nah! It's only this crazy before Sensei gets here."

Sakura shook her head and glanced as the door opened. She was expecting it to be the teacher, but instead she was surprised to see it was the young man that she had ran into earlier. However, this time there was something different. For some reason, he was soaking wet from head to toe and as he walked to his desk across the room from hers, he left a trail of water.

_'How...?' _She looked outside to see it still perfectly sunny and not a storm cloud in the sky.

"Poor guy..." muttered Naruto as he took in the saturated state of the boy.

"What happened to him?"

Naruto's face suddenly became serious as he looked into her eyes "His name is Uchiha Sasuke. Bullies pick on him because he's an easy target. As you can see from his apparel, he is not exactly popular. I'm guessing they shoved him into the showers again."

Picking up on her horrified expression he put his hand up in defense "Don't worry Sakura-chan. I don't think he is a bad guy just because he is a dork, but every time I have tried talking to him, he is a jerk. I have tried multiple times to be his friend, but after so many times, I just quit trying." He side glanced at her, giving her a once over "I don't think you will have to worry about the bullies. Although you may want to stay away from your new fan club. Who knew my cousin was so hot?"

A slight blush lingered on her cheeks as she saw other guys in the class checking her out. Luckily, she didn't have to suffer long, since the door opened and the teacher walked in. The classroom quickly came into order as he walked up to the front podium.

"Class I'm sorry I'm late. You see I saw this old lady and.."

He was quickly cut off by a chorus of students yelling "LIAR!"

"What you don't believe me?"

"NO!"

"Where tired of hearing your stupid excuses" yelled a student in the back

"Yeah!" yelled another student "Your just reading your porn!"

"Hm..." Kakashi scratched his chin thoughtfully "You guys are right. I do need to take more responsibility as your teacher." He then put his right hand over his heart as he was pledging to the class "From this day forth I, Hatake Kakashi, promise to take more responsibility for this third year math class." He then removed his hand and smirked at the class "So now, you can add 30 more math problems to your homework tonight." Groans resounded through the small classroom.

"Now that that is over with" He clapped his hands in front of him "We have a new student today and I'm sure she would love to introduce herself!"

Sakura closed her eyes and inwardly groaned. Eventually, which felt longer than the actually two seconds it was, she stood up in her chair and walked to the front of the classroom where Kakashi motioned her to stand.

"Just tell us a little about yourself: your name, where your from, why your here, hobbies, likes, dislikes. You get the picture."

Sakura looked out at the classroom, wishing that Gaara, Temari and Kankuro were there with her. She saw Naruto smiling encouragingly and she Sasuke in the back staring at her with an extremely bored expression. "My name is Sakura and I just moved here from Suna because of my dad's business. I love to read, listen to music, hang out with my friends, and IM. I am in love with chocolate raspberry ice cream from Brusters...hm" She looked around thoughtfully " I dislike being judged and cliques."

She looked at Kakashi and he nodded her back to her seat "Very interesting Miss Sakura. No last name though?"

She shook her head "Just Sakura please."

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders "Now onto Algerbra II..."

**123451234512345**

Sakura jumped on her bed, exhausted after her first day of school. _'It was a pretty good first day of school and Naruto did hold onto his word about introducing me to his friends. I met TenTen, Shikamaru, Hinata, and Kiba. Hopefully, I can make them my friends as well.' _She thought back to an incident that happened right before lunch and frowned _'I don't know what I'm going to be doing about __**that**__ though...'_

Flashback

_Sakura had just finished class and was heading towards the cafeteria for lunch. Naruto had promised to introduce her to the rest of his friends at lunch and she was looking forward to meeting more people. She was just about to round the corner when _

"_Sakura-chan! Wait up!"_

_Sakura looked up, expecting a blonde haired blue eyed, but just not this one. This one was definitely the opposite of the messy, exuberant blonde she was related to. This one had on the most stylish clothes and make up and every stay hair was in its place._

_The blonde extended her hand in greeting "Hello my name is Ino and word is that your the new student at Kohona High." _

_Sakura raised an eyebrow at this. Of course she is the new student. How could you miss someone with PINK hair? _

_Ino continued rambling on "And as captain of the cheerleading squad, I have taken it upon myself to make you feel welcome on your first day. Come. I'll let you sit with me and my squad at lunch." _

_Sakura smiled politely although inwardly she was irked. 'She will LET us sit with her and her squad. Who does she think she is? She acts as if it is an honor!'_

"_I'm sorry Ino, but I am already have lunch plans. Maybe another time."_

_Ino's eyes instantly narrowed at the dismissal and she pointed one of her French, manicured nailed finger at her "Listen up Forehead. I was trying to be nice, but I guess you want to do this the hard way. If you get in my way in the slightest, prepare for social suicide. Got it!" She then flipped her hair and stormed down the hallway._

_Sakura was later informed from Hinata, who she met in her second hour class and who was also a good friend of Naruto's, that Ino wasn't one of the populars. She was THE popular. Ino ruled the school and if anyone got in her way, she took them down. She always wore the most stylist clothes and dated any guy she wanted. It was always best to stay out of her way, and for some reason, it seems that Sakura had painted a red target sign on her back._

End Flashback

"I guess I will just have to deal with this Ino problem when I get a chance." She then glanced at her backpack filled with homework and then at her computer. " I really should do my homework, but IMing my friends first won't hurt..." Lesson One: Procrastination always wins. Always.

**123451234512345**

_On the end of my computer..._

_So what did you think of the second chapter? As promised, I made it longer than the first. I'm hoping to keep the chapters this size and update every week. Thank you so much for the reviews! I really appreciate them and it is very encouraging! Thanks to: __**Sienna Maiu**__, __**Caged Bird and Weapon Mistress**__, and __**konnichiha yoshi-chan**__._

_Anways, tomorrow is my bday! I'm so excited! Cake and presents! What can be better than that? Well back to the present, I hope you all liked the second chapter. Please review! Thanks!_

_-FakeMirage_


	3. A Different Perspective

More than it seems – A Different Perspective

_'This day is going to be pure hell.'_

This lovely thought was what first went through Uchiha Sasuke's head when he had woken up in the morning. He knew it was going to be bad day. All the signs showed it. First, he fell out of bed when his extremely, annoying alarm went off. Second, it was a Monday, which meant school was today and he had a huge paper due in communications. Third, his father was home.

His father was hardly ever home, but when he was, it never ended well. His father was normally on long business trips and when he wasn't on trips, he spent most of his time in his office. When he eventually came home, if it was a good day, he would just go to bed and be gone by the time Sasuke woke up. Unfortunately, last night had not been a good day. The black and blue bruises that covered his young body proved that point quite well. Uchiha Fugaku was an extreme alcoholic and when he drank, he became unmanageably angry. He often hit his two sons and his faithful wife. When Sasuke asked his mother in the past why she stayed with him, her only answer was "The money is too good." Sasuke knew this was a terrible lie. His mother was quite the business women and quite a photographer. Uchiha Mikoto owned tons of little shops in the Kohona district and she even worked with many celebrities who wanted her to capture their life behind the lens.

Sauske shook his head from his thoughts and grabbed something to wear for school. He looked at his black and blue arms in disdain and picked a long sleeved, yellow and green plaid polo and loose kaki cargo pants. After getting dressed, he headed to the bathroom where he ran his hand through his messy ebony locks and grabbed his square, red rimmed glasses. Sasuke looked himself over in the bathroom mirror and sighed "Wow, this outfit is a winner..."

Sasuke was never a fashion fanatic, nor did he care much about what he wore, but at one time, he would have been called "fashionable" and "popular". That all changed when the Uchihas moved to Kohona right before Sasuke's first year of junior high. Sasuke was sick of the shallow friends that he had before and all of the people that wanted him for money. He decided that the only way to keep people away from him, was to be as nerdy as can be, thus the reason for all of his dorky clothes. Also, it was easier to keep the secret of his father if he didn't have any friends. His mother hated that he hid his true self from others, but she respected his decision. His brother, on the other hand, thought his idea was ridiculous, but who cared what Itachi thought anyways?

After finishing getting ready, Sasuke grabbed his backpack and headed downstairs for a quick breakfast before heading to school. Breakfast was quick, but the silence was deafening. The chef had made gourmet pancakes with tons of toppings to choose from, but to Sasuke, they tasted bland. That may have had to do with the fact that his father was sitting at the front of the table contently eating his breakfast while his beaten mother sat quietly next to him eating her chocolate chip pancakes. His stiff, older brother sat across from him eating blueberry pancakes while he chose to eat plain ones. The sickening part of this meal was the fact that everyone was quiet and tried to act like a "normal" family and ignore the fact that the man at the head of the table beat them only the night before.

After the "normal" family recreation, Sasuke checked his watch for the time only to find the inevitable.

_'7:50! Man I'm going to be late!'_

He then hurriedly grabbed his communication's paper and ran the fastest route to school. Luckily for him, the Uchiha district wasn't but a block from Kohona high school. Unfortunately, it was the prime time for traffic, and although he was only walking, the streets were packed. Sasuke expertly weaved himself through the throngs of people, but every time he was bumped by the unexpected stranger, Sasuke was forced to hide his grimace from his jostled wounds.

Suddenly, all too soon to move out of the way, he saw a petite, young women headed in the same path he was currently taking. A loud "Ouch!" could be heard from both parties as the young man and the young women collided and all of Sasuke's papers scattered as he dropped them. Sasuke couldn't hold in this grimace as the young women jostled all of his wounds from the night before, which led him gasping for air. Finally catching his breath, he noticed the pink-haired young woman on the ground, slightly dazed, as his communication's paper scattered in the wind. Hurriedly, he reached for each of the typed pages. Finally snapping out of it, the young woman tried to apologize "Sorry I wasn't watching were I …." He quickly cut off her apology with a glare "Watch where your going next time!" He then quickly grabbed the rest of his papers and ran off in the same direction she was originally headed.

He felt a tad bit guilty for being so rude to her, but Sasuke was in pain and needed to get away from the situation as fast as possible. Also, if he didn't get to school in time, he would be in a lot more pain than he was before.

_'It's not like I will ever see her again anyways...'_

A couple of minutes late, Sasuke reached the school grounds. Instead of using the front gate like every other student, Sasuke snuck around back and expertly climbed the ivy covered wall. Once he landed on the ground, he scanned the perimeter.

Sasuke let out a sigh of relief _ 'I'm safe for now. Now onto class.'_

He was barely able to finish his thought, when two beefy hands grabbed him by his shoulders and shoved and held him face first into the wall.

" Look who decided to show up for school." a deep gravelly voice uttered. "Did you finish our homework like Neji-sama said? You better have or you know the consequences!"

The grip on his shoulder tightened as he squeaked out a reply. "Yes!Yes! I have your homework. It's in my bag."

The tight grip was released and Sasuke turned as saw his normal aggressor. His name is Akimichi Choji. Choji is a bigger guy than most of the students on campus and he uses this advantage over them to get what he wants. Although Choji is buff, he isn't that bright. In the past, Sasuke has used this knowledge to outsmart Choji and to escape the antagonist.

Choji grabbed the homework as soon as Sasuke handed it to him and turned to his partner in crime " Hey Neji-sama, don't you think that Uchiha was being disrespectful to you? He didn't even greet you with a bow. I think we should teach him a lesson to respect those over him. Don't you agree?"

Neji smirked in agreement. Hyuga Neji was on the top of the food chain of Kohona high. He was also from the prestigious Hyuga clan. In short, Sasuke hated this guy, the fact that Neji and Choji had bullied him from junior high didn't help that matter either.

Neji's cold, silver eyes swept over his form " How bout we clean you up a bit Sasuke and next time you will think twice before disrespecting me."

Choji smirked understanding immediately what his partner had in mind " The showers it is then. Let's make it a cold one."

_**FakeMirage**_

Sasuke sighed as he paused in front of the Algerbra II door. Water was quickly running down his body, leaving behind a puddle where he was currently standing. He didn't know whether or not he should just go in there and face the public humiliation or skip class and go home. If he went in there, he would never be able to live this down, again. If he went home, he would avoid the humiliation, but then he would have to deal with a worried mother and a sadistic brother.

_'Public humiliation it is then.'_

He opened the door as quietly as possible and snuck into the classroom. Of course, Kakashi-sensei wasn't there and the room was in the normal chaotic state. Students were sitting on their desk tops catching up on the latest gossip as paper balls were being thrown across the room. At first, Sasuke thought that they were too distracted to even notice him, but as we walked to his seat, students started snickering in his direction and one student even tried tripping him on his way to his seat.

_'Yep. They noticed me alright.'_

The snickering continued as he sat down in his seat and pulled out last weeks homework. Finally, the door opened and the teacher walked in. The classroom quickly came into order as he walked up to the front podium.

"Class I'm sorry I'm late. You see I saw this old lady and.."

He was quickly cut off by a chorus of students yelling "LIAR!"

"What you don't believe me?"

"NO!"

"Where tired of hearing your stupid excuses" yelled a student in the back

"Yeah!" yelled another student "Your just reading your porn!"

"Hm..." Kakashi scratched his chin thoughtfully "You guys are right. I do need to take more responsibility as your teacher." He then put his right hand over his heart as he was pledging to the class "From this day forth I, Hatake Kakashi, promise to take more responsibility for this third year math class." He then removed his hand and smirked at the class "So now, you can add 30 more math problems to your homework tonight." Groans resounded through the small classroom.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at this dramatic display from his Algebra teacher. _'Kakashi is such a drama queen. You would think that everyone would know by now not to take him seriously.'_

"Now that that is over with" Kakashi clapped his hands in front of him "We have a new student today and I'm sure she would love to introduce herself!"

Sasuke was surprised to see that the pink haired girl he ran into this morning was the new student. She slowly stood up from her chair and walked to the front of the classroom where Kakashi motioned her to stand.

"Just tell us a little about yourself: your name, where your from, why your here, hobbies, likes, dislikes. You get the picture."

Her bright eyes swept the room in either a nervous manner or a confident one, Sasuke couldn't tell. When her green orbs landed on Naruto, she smiled, and they continued their route until they paused on him.

"My name is Sakura and I just moved here from Suna because of my dad's business. I love to read, listen to music, hang out with my friends, and IM. I am in love with chocolate raspberry ice cream from Brusters...hm" She looked around thoughtfully " I dislike being judged and cliques."

She looked at Kakashi and he nodded her back to her seat "Very interesting Miss Sakura. No last name though?"

She shook her head "Just Sakura please."

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders "Now onto Algerbra II..."

_**FakeMirage**_

Sakura sighed as she sat down on her bed. Today had been her first day of school, and although it wasn't the best day, it wasn't bad either. She now had plenty of new friends to call her own. Of course, they didn't come close to replacing her loyal three. As soon as she finished school, she ran upstairs and turned on her computer and starting Iming Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro. They all asked how her first day of school was and how many new friends she had. After chatting with them for a while, she went and ate dinner and then began the long process of doing homework.

Now three hours later, with her homework completed and dinner eaten, she had nothing to do. She had finished her homework and there was nothing on tv. Also, all of her friends weren't online.

Sakura flopped back on her bed " I'm so bored!"

Suddenly an idea popped in her head and she jumped from her bed and grabbed her red Mac. She quickly turned it on and logged into her IM account.

"None of my friends may be on, but I can always meet new ones!"

She quickly clicked on **Chat Room **and filtered them through till she found the **Kohona Chat Room**. Sakura glanced through the names of the active chatters and noticed that many of them were very unique.

**BlindEyedRaven**

**NotTheUnderdog**

**NotAGirl**

**BlondePrincess**

**AGoodBoy**

**RamenKing**

**ObscureTruth**

**TryMyTarget**

**CloudsAreMyFriends**

Chuckling at the list, she finally clicked on **RamenKing**. 'Whoever is obsessed with ramen so much to make it their screen name has to be interesting.'

**JadedCherry: **Hey! What's up?

**RamenKing: **HI! ISN'T RAMEN AMAZING! LET'S TALK ABOUT HOW AMAZING RAMEN IS!

**JadedCherry: **Um...Ramen is kinda of amazing.

**RamenKing: **I KNOW! IT'S SO DELICIOUS AND THERE IS SO MANY DIFFERENT FLAVOURS! THE ONLY BAD THING ABOUT RAMEN IS THE THREE MINUTES IT TAKES TO COOK RAMEN!

**JadedCherry: **You know you can turn the cap lock off, right? And do you only talk about ramen?

**RamenKing: **BELIEVE IT! RAMEN RAMEN RAMEN RAMEN! OH! GOT TO GO! MY RAMEN IS DONE COOKING!

**RamenKing has logged off.**

Sakura shook her head. "That was the weirdest conversation I have ever had. That kid was so weird." Sakura looked back over the list of people logged on " Well now that CaptainRamen is gone, who am I go to talk to? Hm...they seem interesting!" **CLICK**

**JadedCherry: **Hello there!

**JadedCherry: **Are you there?

**JadedCherry: **You know, ignoring people is rude so if your there, you should say hi.

**ObscureTruth: **What do you want?

**JadedCherry:** To say hello and to be friends...maybe, if you not a psychopath

**ObscureTruth: **Yes and I would just right out admit that I'm a psychopath? * rolls eyes *

**JadedCherry: ** * sticks out tongue * You know what I mean

**ObscureTruth: **Babe, how am I suppose to know that your not the psychopath?

**JadedCherry: **Babe? Where in the world did that come from? And of course I'm not a psychopath silly!

**ObscureTruth: **I call you babe because that is what you are. Your not a guy right? If you are then that would be freaky and I will be leaving...

**JadedCherry: **No! No! I am not a guy! Stay! Anyways, what kind of guy would be called jadedcherry?

**ObscureTruth: **A gay one, babe.

**JadedCherry: **Well, I am definitely not a gay guy or gay girl for that matter.

**ObscureTruth: **That's good to know :)

**JadedCherry: **Haha. I agree. Now you have asked me if I'm gay, but you never did tell me if you were or not?

**ObscureTruth: **NOT

**JadedCherry: **If you say so...

**ObscureTruth: **Please, my masculinity is off the charts.

**JadedCherry: *** rolls eyes *Someone has a big ego

**ObscureTruth: *** smirks * Always

**JadedCherry: **LOL. Now that we have that out of the way, what about l/s/a?

**ObscureTruth: **Well I'm sure you have figured out by now that I'm male, but I am 17 and from Kohona.

**JadedCherry: **Well I am a 17 year old female and I just moved to Kohona.

**ObscureTruth: **Why did you move here and how do you like it so far?

**JadedCherry: ** My dad wanted to move here because the location was better here for his job. Kohona is ok so far, but I miss home a lot!

**ObscureTruth: **Well I'm sure you will love Kohona as you live here and if your bored, you can always message me.

**JadedCherry: **Thanks!

Sakura looked at the clock and noticed it was an hour past the time she originally wanted to go to bed. 'I guess I was so interested in our conversation I didn't even notice the time.'

**JadedCherry: **Hey I need to go to bed, but I had a great time talking to you. Can I message you the same time tomorrow?

**ObscureTruth: **Sure babe. Talk to ya tomorrow.

**JadedCherry: **Bye!

**JadedCherry has logged out.**

**ObscureTruth has logged out.**

_**FakeMirage**_

_The plot thickens! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'm sorry I'm late on posting it. This chapter was a lot like the other chapter, but it gives some important insight on Sasuke. If you guys like this, I may continue to switch POVs in future chapters. Thanks to my two wonderful reviewers:__** Caged Bird and Weapon Mistress**__ and __**yoshi-chan**__. You are both amazing and I really appreciate the reviews!_

_Please Review!_

_FakeMirage_


	4. I get to work with who!

More than it seems – School Project

" Wait! Your RamenKing?" Sakura asked in an unbelieving voice.

"Believe it!"

TenTen rolled her eyes "Naruto your an idiot."

Shikamaru sighed " Only you would pick such a troublesome name."

Sakura's first week had flown by and since her first day, it had become a ritual to meet at the tree before and after school. There, they would talk and goof off before school, AKA Death, started. Sakura loved her new friends and had grown very attached to them in the week she had known them. Naruto was an exuberant fellow and always made a way to make her laugh. TenTen was mischievous and a schemer, which normally meant trouble for the group if they went along with her plans. Shikamaru was a lazy, but loyal and caring friend. He was the one you went to for advice and if you asked him to do something for you, and unlike her first assumptions, he would normally do it ( although he would complain and mutter "troublesome" the entire time ). These were her three new best friends and Sakura couldn't ask for better. She only hoped that when she reveiled the truth of who she was, then they would still be her friends for her and not her money.

Sakura attention was quickly diverted from her friends to the the onyx haired boy that quickly entered the school building. She had hardly spoken three words to the boy, though every time she saw him, she was instantly drawn to him. Sakura's encounters with Sasuke were few, but every time they did occur, he was rude and quick to get away from her. Normally, people would be offended or even angry with his behavior, but Sakura was more determined than ever to figure Uchiha Sasuke out. The only problem was when.

Her attention was drawn to TenTen as she laughed heartily at a steaming Naruto.

_'They act a lot like a brother and sister...'_

A shrill ring filled the courtyard to remind the students that school was about to start. Sighing, Sakura picked up her backpack and followed the group towards the school building.

_**FakeMirage**_

" My students filled with youthfulness! It is time to start a quarter long assignment!"

Sakura was currently sitting in her Communications class and the teacher that was narrating was Gai sensei. He was an oddly enthusiastic teacher who loved teaching. He was normally a pretty descent teacher who was always willing to help a student in need, but he did have his querks about being on time and turning assignments in on time. Gai-sensei was also a little on the odd side. He always talked about spring, sunshine, rainbows and other "youthful" things. He wore a shiny, green faux leather suit to class every day and his bowl styled hair was always shiny and in its place. To put it simply, he was often the subject of students ridicule.

"For this assignment, you will work in pairs and do a five paged biography on your partner. You will need to know the basic facts, as in name, age, family, and what they are interested in as in hobbies and life goal. You may also need to put family information. Do they have any siblings? What are their parents occupation? Has this influenced them in their life goal? Also, how was your partners childhood? I will pass out a list of activities that I want you to do with your partners and I would like you to record the happenings in your journal. Not only are you supposed to record all these details and write in into a biography, but you also need to write an essay recording how this assignment changed your perceptive of your partner, if it did at all. This is Communications class. The point of this class is to learn how to perceive people and learn how to communicate well with them, whether that be oral or written."

Gai paused as he saw a delicate hand being raised in the back "Yes, Ino what is your question?"

Ino innocently batted her eyes at the teacher " Gai sensei, wouldn't it be wonderfully youthful if we were able to pick out our own partners?"

Sakura snorted quietly _ 'Suck up.'_

Gai's eyes lit up in excitement " Ino you are correct! It would be youthful to let you pick out your own partners, but unfortunately, it would ruin the point of the assignment. If I let you choose your own partner then most likely you would know them pretty well and get along with them. Then, you might have had plenty of time to come up with your view of them. If I, however, choose a controversial partner for you, then your perception of them might be able to change. Any questions?"

No one raised their hands, but many of the students were anticipating and dreading the findings of their partners.

Gai smiled at the class as he picked up a clipboard from his desk " Excellent. I will now read off your pre-assigned partners and when you find out your partner, sit with them for them for the remaining of the quarter."

"Shin and Ami"

"Naruto and Neji" Naruto groaned and hit his palm into his head. He then slowly headed to the bully that terrorized the school,Neji.

"Hinata and Kiba"

"Choji and Shino"

"Ino and Shikamaru" Shikamaru muttered troublesome as he headed over to Ino who had an unreadable expression on her face.

Sakura quickly became bored as more names were read off and everyone paired off with their partners. Finally her name was read off, " Sakura and Sasuke"

Her green eyes darted to the back of the classroom where Sasuke was seated. Just like every other time she had seen him, he wore an impassive mask. Of course, she didn't know the inner turmoil that was occurring in his mind at that moment.

_**FakeMirage**_

_'This assignment sucks!' _Sasuke glanced over as his new pink haired partner headed in his direction. _'Why do we have to write a biography on our partners? I never, __**never**__, talk to anyone, let alone tell them everything about me.' _He watched as Sakura put her things on the desk next to him'_I guess I am just going to have to be careful with what I say, otherwise someone may get hurt.'_

A tentative smile was headed in his direction, but Sasuke gave no response. He watched as her ivy colored eyes narrowed in frustration " Look, lets not start this project off on the wrong foot." Her hand extended towards him "I'm Sakura."

He hesitantly shook her small hand "Sasuke."

Her smile grew as she sat down and pulled out a notebook and turned to a blank page. "Alright, well, as you may have realized, I am new to this school so I don't really know anything about you other than your name."

Sakura waited for a response, but she received none in return. "Your not much of a talker are you?"

An onyx eye brow raised. A response, finally. "You talk to much."

Once again, her eyes narrowed and her lips thinned "I have only tried to be nice to you since we have met. Why are you such a jerk? We need a good grade on this assignment, so make it easy for both of us and don't be stubborn. To make it easy, why don't we each write down some questions that we want to know about each other? This way we can get our project done, but then you don't have to talk to me."

Although amused at her frustration, Sasuke nodded and copied her movements as he also began writing down questions. After he had finished, he handed her the sheet and leaned back in his chair as she finished her questions. Seeing that he had already finished, she rapidly wrote down the last of her questions and handed the paper to him. He almost smirked as he saw the artistic way that she written and doodled on the paper. He didn't have time to finish reading them before the shrill sound of the bell went off telling the students that school was over. Sasuke quickly grabbed his things and stuffed them into his book bag, ready to go home for the day. He didn't have a chance to scurry out of the room, though, for Sakura gently grabbed his elbow and handed him a small piece of green paper.

"This is my cell phone number. We will probably need to talk later about when we are going to be doing those activities. I'll try to finish those questions tonight so we can talk about them tomorrow."

She then turned and waved goodbye "See you later Sasuke."

Sasuke smirked as she ran out of the classroom _'What an unusual girl.'_

_**FakeMirage**_

Sakura, for most of the time, was a confident person. She always felt comfortable with herself and she didn't care what people thought of her. This time was the exception. She looked at the cafe in front of her called Kookie's Korner. The quaint cafe was owned by a local owner and everything they made was home made. They made small sandwiches, muffins, pastries and other deserts, which is how they became popular in the town. Their coffee and their tea was also a rivaling fact for the local Starbucks. Not only was the food good, but everyone loved the ambience that radiated from the place. Everyone who went into the cafe, would call it "cute", from the blue and green interior to the small flower boxes on the windows. The cafe also had excellent service. It was a family owned restaurant and they hardly ever hired outside of the family.

This last thought is what had the poor girl nervous. The girl next to her turned to face her new friend "So what do you think of my grandma's cafe? It's not very big, but we get a lot of business and we could use the extra help. Also, the perks are great. You get as much drinks and pastries as you want! Plus, I will be the one that trains you. This is going to be so much fun!"

Sakura smiled at the excited girl "Calm down TenTen. I'm sure this will be great. Thanks for getting me the job."

TenTen flashed her the victory sign "No problem. What are friends for?"

Because of her father's job, Sakura was never really hurting for money. She didn't flaunt her wealth, but if she needed or wanted something, she bought it. Her father always gave her a fixed amount of money per month and she could use that money in whichever way pleased her. The thought of getting a job never really crossed her mind in Suna, but Sakura decided that it was time to save up some extra money for college since she would be graduating next year. Also, it never hurts to have some extra spending money and she knew it would be gratifying to earn her own wages. Her next dilemma was where she was going to apply. She knew of some shops in Konoha, but she didn't know where would be the best place to apply. When she mentioned the thought to the gang, TenTen mentioned the cafe. The cafe was right in between school and home, and Sakura fell in love with it the first time she saw it. After debating with her grandmother, TenTen was able to get Sakura the job.

After giving the cafe one last nervous glance, Sakura followed TenTen into the small shop. The cafe wasn't too crowded, but it was bustling. TenTen led her to the back of the cafe where she handed her a mint green apron and a notebook.

"Unlike in other coffee shops, you don't walk up and order at the counter. You sit down, and a waitress, will take and serve your order. Your job will to do just that. You will be assigned a part of the cafe to serve. If they order any drinks or pastries, then you will fill the order. If they order a sandwich or soup, then post the order on the kitchen counter, and someone will make it for you."

TenTen smiled "Today, I will follow you around and help you, so there isn't any need to be worried ok?"

An uneasy smile filtered on Sakura's face as reassurance. TenTen smiled again and looked at the workers roster. "Hm..ok I guess I should introduce you to your new coworkers." She grabbed Sakura's arm and led to the cash register where a boy was standing. He wore a dark trench coat over a grey hoodie and dark sunglasses covered his eyes. Unlike the rest of the crew, he didn't wear a green apron, but he did have a name tag with the name _Shino _embellished on it.

"Hey Shino! I want you to meet my new friend and the newest member of the _ family!"

Shino turned around and stared at TenTen, not saying a word. Seeing as he wasn't going to make the first move, Sakura extended her arm in greeting and introduced herself. "Hey, I'm Sakura."

Diverting his attention from TenTen, Shino turned his attention to the pink haired girl. Seeing her arm extended, her reached for it and gently lifted it to his lips "Nice to meet you Sakura. I'm Shino."

Blushing, Sakura pulled her hand away as TenTen smacked him on the head "That is no way to greet her! Come on Sakura, I'll go introduce you to someone else."

Stepping away, TenTen apologized "I'm sorry Sakura. Shino isn't normally like that. He's just my weird cousin. Just ignore him. I do."

Shino glared at the girl "I can still hear you."

She stuck her tongue out playfully as she then dragged Sakura towards the kitchen.

Peering through the kitchen window, the girls saw a heavy set guy working in the kitchen

Sakura's large forehead crinkled in confusion _'He looks familiar...?' "_Isn't that Choji?"

TenTen nodded, " He's my cousin from my mother's side. He's a real jerk at school, because he does whatever Neji tells him to, but he's an amazing cook. Maybe when you get on his good side, he will make you his chocolate raspberry delight cake. It's to die for!"

Sakura nodded in confirmation, but her attention was caught on someone else. It was a boy a couple of years older than herself, with silky, black hair and deep eyes. His face was contemplative as he carefully took the order of the customers that he was serving.

Someone snapped their fingers in front of her dazed face " Earth to Sakura! What are you looking at?"

Folowing her gaze, TenTen pinpointed what riveted her attention " Oh. That's Uchiha Itachi. His father owns the big Uchiha Industries. He started working here a couple of years ago. My grandmother doesn't normally hire outside of the family, but like you, she liked him immediately and gave him a chance. " She sighed dreamily "Itachi looks like a god doesn't he." Sakura couldn't help but agree, but then TenTen's expression turned hard "Don't get your hopes up. He's not interested in any girls that have thrown themselves at him, and I don't want to deal with a heartbroken friend, ok? Besides, he may look like a god, but he is kinda a big jerk."

She then teasingly poked her on her side before pushing her towards a couple that just seated themselves " Come on slowpoke! Stop slacking and get to work!"

Sakura smiled as she headed towards the couple with TenTen by her side _'I think I'm going to enjoy working here.'_

_**FakeMirage**_

_Well It's finally here! I'm sorry that chapter took so long to do. I don't know why, but I just couldn't work on it. Now this story will really get interesting now that we have more characters. Sorry if I freaked any of you out with the Shino thing. It seemed like a fun thing to do lol. Thanks again to all my amazing reviewers: _**konnichiha yoshi-chan**_, _**Caged Bird and Weapon Mistress**_, and to all my unsigned reviewers!. I love hearing all of your thoughts. Thanks again and I'll update asap!_

_FakeMirage_


	5. To be happy

_I do not own Naruto or any of their characters. However, I do own my own characters and this story line. _

More than it seems – Chapter 5

_'Thoughts'_

_Sasuke's texts_

_**Sakura's texts**_

Sasuke smirked as he looked down on the sheet of paper in his hands. The paper was torn on one side and had artsy flowers drawn on the margins. The purple ink glittered as he turned it side to side. Not that he liked the purple ink, but Sasuke merely thought the girl's answers to the questions were amusing.

_'Sakura is proving herself to be very odd.'_

He began reading through the questions he had written only earlier today, unknowingly taking note of each answer.

Do you have any siblings? _None, unless my father has an illegitimate child somewhere or maybe I have a secret twin! That would be cool._

What is your favorite color? _Well unlike most people assume,my favorite color is green. Just because I have pink hair doesn't mean that pink is my favorite color. _

Do you have a job? _Well, I'm starting working at Kookie's Korner today after school. I hope I don't dump food on someone..._

What is your favorite sport? _Hm...I like playing soccer. Watching it is pretty fun too._

Where did you live before moving to Konoha? _Suna! I loved it, especially the warm weather and my friends. _

Why did you move? _My stupid father wanted to move here for his job._

The list went on and on, and Sakura's commentaries didn't fail to make his lips curl up into a foreign (for him) position. Each question was answered in a way that was unique to Sakura's personality, and Sasuke's found it very intriguing. One answer, though, made the smile fall and annoying voice fill his head.

_'She is going to be working at Kookie's Korner? That's where Itachi works...What if she likes him better than me?'_ He looked down on his dorky attire that was meant to cause people to leave him alone. It always did the job, but now he was wishing he wore something a little more stylish.

Sasuke wasn't sure where the thought had come from or why it was such a worry wether or not Sakura liked him better than Itachi. He never had worried about girls before. Heck, he never worried about friends before! It was safer this way, and it made his life easier. Why was this girl changing everything?

He stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper. Although it was crumpled, the numbers were still visible on the green background.

**Flashback**

Sasuke quickly grabbed his things and stuffed them into his book bag, ready to go home for the day. He didn't have a chance to scurry out of the room, though, for Sakura gently grabbed his elbow and handed him a small piece of green paper.

"This is my cell phone number. We will probably need to talk later about when we are going to be doing those activities. I'll try to finish those questions tonight so we can talk about them tomorrow."

She then turned and waved goodbye "See you later Sasuke."

Sasuke smirked as she ran out of the classroom _'What an unusual girl.'_

**End Flashback**

_'The project isn't due until the end of the semester, but we should at least work on it a little bit.' _He glanced at the long activity sheet laying on the top of his bed. _'We should probably get started with that.'_

The first thing on the list was to walk around Konoha and point out your favorite places to hang out. You were then supposed to discuss with your partner why you liked the spot and write an essay on your partner's answers. Looking at his wrist watch, he noticed that it was only seven. He quickly pulled out his phone and added Sakura's number. His list of contacts was short, with only having his family to talk to (which he never did if he could help it, except for his mother; he was a mamma's boy). After adding her to his contact list, he quickly sent her a text message.

_**FakeMirage**_

Sakura sighed as she plopped on her bed. She had just gotten home from work and she was pooped. Although the job at Kookie's Korner seemed promising, it was also very tiring. Some of the people were very rude, short tempered, and impatient while other were very kind, patient and friendly. The day had gone very well, at least for a first day. The fact that she didn't dump food on anyone was the cherry on top. Tiredly, she grabbed her phone to look at the time. Seven ten lit up on her screen along with a notification that she had one unread message. Curious, she clicked on the notification and a short message from an unknown number filled her screen.

_Do you want to start the activity list tonight?_

Confused, Sakura looked at the number one more time. Determined that she didn't know them, she re-read the small message and a light bulb went off as she figured out who had sent it, _Sasuke. _Quickly she added his number to her phone. She glanced at the time once more before quickly sending him a response.

_**I can as long as we don't stay out too late. I'm pooped. Which activity do you want to do?**_

She didn't have to wait long before the soft jingles of her ringtone filled her room.

_The first one. I'll pick you up in ten minutes._

_**Wait! How do you know where I live?**_

She didn't get a response, but in exactly ten minutes a knock was heard coming from the front door. Quickly grabbing her purse and slipping on her flip flops, she bounded down the stairs and opened the door. Just as expected, Sasuke stood at the entrance, his stance relaxed as he leaned against the door frame with his hands in his pockets. Expecting to see the Sasuke from school, she was quite surprised to see him look the way he did. Instead of the somewhat geeky attire that he wore to school, he was wearing a long sleeve navy shirt and dark washed jeans. Sakura was also able to see that his eyes were a beautiful, dark charcoal since they were now not covered by the huge red glasses. _'His eyes are gorgeous...why haven't I ever noticed that before?'_

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts she turned and raised an eyebrow towards the boys that was just silently watching her " Wait...how is the world did you know where I lived?"

Ignoring her question, Sasuke turned and started walking away, " Don't be annoying. Lets go."

Huffing, Sakura closed the door, a little harder than needed, and after locking it, ran to catch up with the boy.

The two were quietly walking down the street towards town, well that is where Sakura thought they were headed. This town was much more confusing than Suna and she still trying to figure out directions.

Nervously tugging at the bottom of her shirt, Sakura glanced over at her silent partner " Um...where are we going exactly?" She didn't exactly know why she was nervous, but the constant butterflies in her stomach told her that she indeed was.

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair, a habit he did whenever he was nervous or frustrated. " The project requires us to take each other to one of our favorite places in Konoha. I'm taking you to mine first."

A huff was heard from the otherwise silent girl as she crossed her arms and rolled her eyes " You know, your not very good at answering questions. I didn't ask why we were going to this 'somewhere' just where that 'somewhere' was."

Sasuke smirked at the pout forming on the girl's facial features " You'll see when we get there."

He almost laughed as the pout turned to a scowl as she muttered words as "chicken hair", "jerk" and "kidnapper".

**FakeMirage**

It took the two thirty minutes to get to their destination. Instead of going through town like Sakura thought they were originally doing, they headed around the town towards the Hokage monument. After a hard hike up the mountain they were finally able to reach the top.

Huffing behind Sasuke, who hadn't even broken a sweat, Sakura was relieved when Sasuke told her that they had arrived at their destination.

Sakura almost growled at the smirk that Sasuke had sent her way. He dragged her all the way up this mountain just to make fun of her! If she had known they were going to be hiking she would have worn more sustainable shoes instead of flip flops. " So this is your favorite place in Konoha? A mountain?"

He shook his head at her reluctance and motioned here closer to the edge "You can't see anything from back there. Come closer."

She took small hesitant steps towards Sasuke where he stood near the edge of the monument and almost gasped at what she saw. All of Konoha layed out before them below the mountain. The inky night contrasted with millions of city lights causing them to sparkle like diamonds. Cars could be seen on the roads below, but they were far enough away that the city life seemed quiet. All of Konoha could be seen from the high altitude and the sight would still be breathtaking in the daylight although the twinkling stars above added to the marvel.

Sasuke glanced at the awe struck girl and decided to break the silence " This is the place I go to whenever I need space to myself or just time to think. No one ever comes up here except for me so I always have the space to myself."

Sakura nodded not taking her eyes off of the view before her "It's beautiful..."

Sasuke smirked as he took her arm and led her toward the way they came " Come on. Let me take you home."

"What about my favorite place. It's my turn Uchiha!"

Sasuke shook his head "It's getting late. I'll let you torture me tomorrow with whatever girly place you take me to. Right now I just want to get some sleep."

Sakura yawned and couldn't help but agree. She smiled as she hooked her arm through his and leaned her head against his arm as he led her home.

Sasuke glanced down at the pink haired girl hanging off of his arm, a real smile flickering on his face. Somehow this felt right even if it was caused by sleep clouded judgement. He forgot who he was at that moment. He forgot his family, the bullies and the beating he was sure to get when he got home. He felt happy and content at the moment and he just wanted that feeling to last even if it he knew it could not. Tomorrow he would worry about staying invisible, but for right now, he was going to be happy.

**FakeMirage**

_Here is the longly awaited chapter. Sorry it took so long. College classes were harder than I expected this past semester and I also started a new story called "Another Side of Me". Thanks again for all of those special people that reviewed: _**DeidaraLuver, **_**xXRavenous-TidesXx, Kaydreams, ArtisttaLuv6, sasuxsaku lover101, Deathcomessoon**__ and __**Caged Bird and Weapon Mistress. **__I love you guys! Thanks again and I'll try to update soon!_

_Ciao! ___


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